Allure Man: Hair Highlights of the Week

What a week for men’s hair, in a the good, the bad, and the ugly (yeah, Bieber, that’s you) kind of way. First, let’s praise Mohawk Man, the NASA flight director Bobak Ferdowsi, whose red-streaked brush of dark hair, complete with white stars bleached onto the sides, mixed punk style and patriotism in a way we’ve never seen before.

Ferdowsi, who got a lot of exposure during this week’s successful landing of the Mars Science Laboratory, said he hoped his instant fame would encourage young nonconformists to consider a career in science. We look forward to a new generation of rocket-scientists-as-trendsetters.

Next, at the London Olympics, American gymnast Danell Leyva, bronze medalist in the all-around competition, had to vie for attention with his own stepdad and coach, Yin Alvarez, who, besides mugging wildly for the cameras, had swept his short gray hair into a pointy faux-hawk. I have no problem with the silver hair—it’s age-approriate, after all—but the style itself just seemed to try a little too hard (a bit like Alvarez himself).

Finally, Justin Bieber commented to a British magazine that Prince William, the heir with receding hair, should use Propecia. Bad timing, bad judgment, and really bad karma, Biebs. I say, if you're going to wear a crown, you probably don't have to worry too much about what else is going on up there.